Ripping yarns from the Age of Adventure

Jacky Ickx

Post navigation

Londoners tend to treat motor sport as something that pro-Brexit hillbillies from the countryside are interested in. This is a grave error on their part, which is being addressed this weekend at the inaugural Historic Motorsport International, which is part of the annual Classic Car Show at London’s ExCeL.

Yesterday the event was opened by Jacky Ickx, winner of eight Formula 1 grands prix, six Le Mans 24 Hours, the Bathurst 1000 and the Paris-Dakar rally, to name but a few achievements in a career that is, by any standards, rather special. Apparently, Jacky never considered motor sport to be a viable career and wanted to work in horticulture as a lad – at which point compère Henry Hope-Frost invited him over for a few laps of the lawn with his ride-on mower.

“Honestly, Henry, you can’t afford it!”

Amid such good cheer the gleaming paintwork was admired, the dazzling array of products and services was digested and many an interesting confab occurred. The ExCeL is a sea of wheels and oils and panel shapers and engine fettlers – all with a display of their wares to be found and dribbled over .

Of particular note was a panel discussion on the eligibility of historic cars and policing the numerous ways in which owners will try and gain an unfair advantage.

Let’s be frank: if you can afford to own and drive a historic racing car then you’re not the sort of person who likes finishing second. At anything. And if you’ve also spent a small fortune on hospitality with which to entertain and impress people, you want to finish in front. Which means that all sorts of clever engineering is being funded, from high performance Honda pistons in a Mini-Cooper to traction control on a Jaguar E-Type.

The effect that this is having upon the sport is potentially profound. Are fans being cheated? Do they care? Is it dangerous? Can the circuits cope? What about insurance? The session was led by former Le Mans winner and GT impresario Jürgen Bärth, who now tries to keep order over such matters on behalf of the FIA Historic Commission. The result? Inconclusive.

There are so many variables to consider – not least the quality of the drivers. Some owners will only drive themselves, with variable results, while others will happily pay a young up-and-coming hotshoe or veteran professional to get in and have a thrash. Equally some cars that were race winners are now worth eight-figure sums and driven with a degree more caution than more modest equipment of less value.

It made for a fascinating conversation revealing sufficient parameters and variables to make one’s head spin. Results were inconclusive, save for all scrutineers pledging to be more rigorous when Adrian Newey’s name appears on the entry list!

Still more such discussions were to be had for event promoters, driving standards officials and other key elements behind the organisation of historic motor sport events. All of them raised strong points and were well worth the asking price. How big can events become? How many events can the global calendar sustain at the present time? How can owners be tempted to keep bringing these cars out when their value increases by telephone numbers each year?

Now, though, the show has kicked fully into public mode, it can be enjoyed at leisure. There’s even a very suitable bar for yarning further about the why’s and wherefore’s of running a historic motor race… the cheeky beggars!

So get on down to the ExCeL, it’s February and there’s nothing happening on track for months to come so why not make the most of what is a very entertaining weekend. Here’s a little preview of what’s in store…